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To the Editor...
Letters will only be considered if they carry the writer's full name, address and telephone number (if any). The identity of the writers will be protected. Letters must be limited to 300 words. All letters will be subject to editing.
Heading towards an uncivilized country?
For the last few years Bangladesh has been experiencing a series of bomb and grenade attacks on cultural functions, political gatherings, cinema halls, mosque and recently on NGO offices. Scores of people along with former finance minister SAMS Kibria, have lost their lives. The image of the country has been tarnished abroad. The pattern of the attacks force us to conclude that these have been perpetuated by as well organised and highly trained militant group. Anyone can see what and who the targets are. All attempts to nab the perpetrators, however, have been proved futile. Sometimes government has been seemed to be reluctant to go for tougher actions, for example the failure capturing Bangla Bhai. The allegation of destroying the evidence of grenade attacks on Awami League rally and
Mr. Kibria, has also been raised by the victims. The inherent message is clear: no cultural functions or national ceremonies or political rallies ( except of fundamentalists and their collaborators) will be tolerated. The perpetrators have already achieved a good deal of success by terrorizing society and not many will feel comfortable to attend or participate in celebrations or functions the Bangalees hold dear to their hearts. If the increasing grenade and bomb attacks cannot be stopped, the democratic environment of the country will be destroyed. And that might lead us towards a civil disorder.
Mallik Akram Hossain
The University of Hong Kong Hong Kong
"See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil"
Jameel Musa in his rejoinder of January 14, 2004, accuses me of devaluing Khaleda Zia and Sheikh
Hasina for stating "the main reason these two ladies find themselves at the top of the political ladder is Bangladesh's obsession with family names".E He justifies his accusation by pointing out that the Bush family in the US also has similar dynastic political legacies. However, he forgets one vital difference between the electoral process in the US and Bangladesh:E presidential candidates in the US have to go through a rigorous selection and a primary election process entailing numerous public debates.EIn most cases, they would have had to prove their leadership through lower public offices that they had to attain by ballot. Some of the fallacies of the Bangladeshi dynastic political leadership were aptly pointed out in AR Shamsul Islam's article titled, "Dynastic leadership and fallout" (DS, February 5, 2004):E It discourages talented individuals from entering politics since there is little scope of rising through the party
hierarchy. This creates an effective vacuum at the top and corrodes the spirit of democracy within.EIn turn, both party and the national leaderships become authoritarian, despotic, exploiting and persecuting. These leaders start to view the party and the nation as their exclusive fiefdoms ordained to be ruled by their families. Thus such parties attract self-seeking yes-men and repel conscientious and dedicated activists.EIn my opinion, these are not good value propositions for any country.
Mr. Musa unfairly blames me for thinking that Bangla Bhai is a real threat to the world -- I never stated nor implied this.EHe then draws a parallel between the threat posed by Bangla Bhai to Bangladesh and the threat posed by the fundamentalist Christian Evangelicals to the Muslims.E While I am no stranger to publicly expressing my strong distaste for religious fundamentalists wherever they may be, evangel-
icals in the west still have to abide by the law of the land.E On the other hand, renegades, anarchists and parasites seem to be making the most of the weak law enforcement in Bangladesh.ECollectively, militants like Bangla Bhai, PBCP and Harkatul Jihad reflect an atmosphere of lawlessness.E And that is a genuine concern for a sovereign nation.
Mr. Musa is wrong to think that the British public is pro-American since the vast majority of them voiced their strong opposition in hundreds and thousands to Bush's illegal invasion of Iraq.E Apart from the widely reported global anti-war protests in London and elsewhere in the UK, Blair was twice reprimanded on live British TV for planning to send troops without getting UN approval.EThe main opposition party continues to state that Blair lied about the pre-war intelligence. The third party is also opposed to the Iraq war.
Finally, I am grateful for Mr. Musa's generous praises for me. He and I both being respectful, responsible yet independent minds and strong believers in democratic values, may in the end have to agree to disagree. However, I do not for a moment question his patriotism and I assure him that I have Bangladesh's best interest at heart.
Shabbir A. Bashar, PhD.
San Francisco Bay Area, California, USA
Feeling from Kolkata
I am an Indian who was once based in Dhaka and used to subscribe to The Daily Star. I still read it, time permitting, on the net. Really I liked the beautifully described sense of frustration by Rubana Haq in her piece. The lady has managed to amplify the sense of frustration that I as a fellow Bengali and human being felt when dealing with the educated youngsters who could speak perfect
Americanised English but could not write two correct sentences.
Let us for once forget the fact that we as a race are divided and instead try and work towards enriching the future Bengali generation. Let us not design curriculum that teaches nothing and promotes mediocrity. We Bengalis are far better than that. Once again my compliments to the good lady, she sure struck a chord in me.
Arijit Sengupta
Kolkata
SAARC Summit
India's eleventh hour decision not to attend the SAARC Summit in Dhaka came as a bolt from the blue! Had there been any security lapses, India could communicate her concerns for necessary redress far before. And there was every opportunity of doing so. I was rather horrified to find Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, being a seasoned politician, took such a
thoughtless decision which lacks farsightedness and political commitment!
I am sure, had the former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee in power, he would not have taken such a decision at least for the sake of maintaining regional trust, understanding and friendship! Anyway, I sincerely hope that India would take immediate initiative to announce a fresh date for the SAARC Summit.
Professor M. Zahidul Haque Chairman
Department of Language Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University
Dhaka-1207